The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1887-08-31
PensiOning Aliens.

The following letter from reader of
the Journal in Montpelier calls atten
ton to a matter which has received
little or no public consideration: " In a
letter recently received from Ireland it
was stated that among the duties of
American consuls in Ireland is the pay
ment to several hundred persons who
are on the United States pension rolls
of their quarterly dues. A small pro-
portion only of these were ever citizens
of the United States. Some were hired
as substitutes; others went to the war
actuated only by the high bounties
which were paid. Not few of these
pensions amount to as much as $40 a
MONTH This matter has caused much
interested comment in foreign countries
ever since the recent change in the law
permitting such payments of pensions
abroad, as the United States is the only
government in the world which pays
pensions to people who do not reside
within its borders. In Canada applica-
tions for pensions are made in large
numbers, not only by soldiers but by
the widows and dependent relatives of
soldiers who were never in the United
States. Special examiners of the pen
sion office are often sent to Canada, at
great expense, to investigate and COM
plete doubtful claims, in which hundreds
of dollars of arrears are often paid. APP
plicants for pensions residing in Canada
complain because required to report to
boards of surgeons in the States for eX-
animation, and last spring a request
was made to the pension office to organ
ize a medical board in Montreal for the
accommodation of applicants residing
in Canada. Such board would be
highly priced by those applicants who
fled to Canada to escape debts or crimes
and dare not return, even for an exam
ination for pension, for fear of arrest.
Ireland and Canada are not the only
countries where American pensions
are paid. They are paid in almost
every country in the world, and to APP
plicants who have not the slightest in
terest in the United States beyond the
pension they receive. The worst fraudu.
lent cases are difficult to discover in a
foreign land, with no friendly officials
and guilty parties easily escape punish
ment. If pensions are to be continued
to parties residing in other countries
would it not be well to pay them only
one-half the rate paid home pensioners
where the community is indirectly bene-
fitted by the payment? 7. j. DEAvITT.'
We think it will occur to most people
that instead of providing additional
facilities for pensioning these aliens
from the treasury of the United States,
as the Canadian claimants desire, il
| hn hot TO
some way to restrict payments of this
kind. Chances of fraud, as our CORE
spondent suggests, are greatly increased
when the persons claiming pensions
live in foreign country and are so fal
removed that it is difficult to make a
searching investigation. 1t is an un
looked-for contingency if people claim
ing to be the dependent relatives OF
! deceased soldiers are liable to come
forward in any country and ask to be
| put upon our pension rolls. 1t is true
that great many men of foreign
nationalities served in the northern
armies during the war, but most OF
them were American citizens anC
fought for their adopted country witt
very much the same spirit of genuine
patriotism as those who were born
under our flag. Their valor was recog
nized, and they and their dependents
are justly borne upon our pension rolls
But their case is entirely different from
that of men who were never citizens
and many of whom enlisted solely be
cause they could get large sums to &c
as substitutes or because the generous
bounties tempted them. Where the
men were of this type, and demon
strated their lack of interest in Ameri
can institutions by speedily going back
to the countries whence they came, il
scarcely seems that they should occupy
precisely the same position as our owr
citizens who were prompted by love OF
country AS regards the men who
are neither citizens nor residents Of
the United States, ii is probable tina
little injustice would be done by as
Stunning that accounts were squared
when they received their bounties, OF
their pay as substitutes, and their regu
lar pay while in the service. AS 6
general principle, the pensioning Of
citizens or residents only would be the
better policy, even for government Sc